Automatic wire wrapping apparatus



Nov. 25, 1969 w. D. BOHANNON, JR.. ET 3,

AUTOMATIC WIRE WRAPPING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 1., 1967 8 Sheets-Sheet 1JNVE'N'T'UFPS LU. IIZ EUHHNNUN JR.

H U. K NE Nov. 25, 1969 w. D. BOHANNON, JR., ET AL 3, 3

AUTOMATIC WIRE WRAPPING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 1, 1967 1 8 Sheets-Sheet 2Ila IN u a Nov. 25, 1969 Filed Sept. 1. 1967 W. D. BOHANNON, JR.,

ET AL AUTOMATIC WIRE WRAPPING APPARATUS 8 Sheets-Sheet 15 ii g-E Nov.25, 1969 w. DJBOHANNON, JR., ET AL 3,479,720

AUTOMATIC WIRE WRAPPING APPARATUS 8 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Sept.

P im fiw Nov. 25', 1969 Filed Sept. 1

W. D. BOHANNON, JR,

AUTOMATIC WIRE WRAPPING APPARATUS ET AL 3,479,720

ET AL 3,479,720

Nov. 25, 1969 w. D. BOHANNO'N, JR",

AUTOMATIC WIRE WRAPPING APPARATUS 8 Sheets-Sheet e Filed Sept. 1, 1967Nov. 25, 1969 w. D. BOHANNON, JR.. ET 3,479,720

AUTOMATIC WIRE WRAPPING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 1, 1967 8 Sheets-Sheet 7Nov. 25, 1969 w. o. BOHANNON, JR., ET AL 3,479,720

AUTOMATIC WIRE WRAPPING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 1, 1967 8 Sheets-Sheet HUnited States Patent O 3,479,720 AUTOMATIC WIRE WRAPPING APPARATUSWilliam D. Bohannon, Jr., Graham, and Harold 0. King, Elon College,N.C., assignors to Western Electric Company, Incorporated, New York,N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Sept. 1, 1967, Ser. No. 665,110Int. Cl. B21f 3/00 US. Cl. 29-203 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Anautomatic wire wrapping apparatus wraps the ends of a section of wire onrespective first and second terminals on a terminal board in a selectedone of two modes of operation. The first mode of operation is tosimultaneously wrap the ends of the wire on the respective first andsecond terminals. The second mode of operation is to sequentially wrap afirst end of the Wire on the first terminal, lay the wire in apredetermined path on the terminal board from the first to the secondterminal, and wrap the second end of the wire on the second terminal.During the laying of wire, the wire is fed toward the terminal board tolay the Wire directly on the terminal board.

GOVERNMENT CONTRACT The invention herein claimed was made in the courseof, or under contract with the United States Army.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention In the manufacture ofcomplex electronic equipment, such as computers, switching systems,etc., electrical connections are made between terminals on terminalboards or chassis by automatic apparatus which wraps the ends of alength of wire on respective terminals. In order t avoid inductivecoupling between wires, the wires must sometimes be laid in complexpatterns to provide maximum spacing between certain wires. Also, theautomatic apparatus must operate quicky in order to make a large numberof electrical connections within a short period of time.

Description of the prior art In the prior art, there are manynumerically controlled apparatus which automatically wrap the ends oflengths of wires on terminals. Basically, there are two types of wireWrapping apparatus in the prior art. The first type of prior art wirewrapping apparatus utilizes a single wire wrapping assembly tosequentially Wrap a first end of a length of wire to a first terminal,lay the wire in a pattern on the terminal board from the first terminalto a second terminal and wrap the second end of the length of wire ontothe second terminal. This first type of apparatus is capable of layingthe wire in almost any pattern on the terminal board but the sequentialoperation is time c011- suming with fewer than the desirable number ofelectrical connections being made within a given period of time.

The second type of prior art wire Wrapping apparatus simultaneouslywraps both ends of a length of wire t respective terminals. This secondtype of apparatus is faster in operation than the first type but islimited in the pattern in which the wire may be laid on the terminalboard. One or more dressing fingers are required to lay the wire in evena simple L-shaped pattern. As the complexity of the pattern increases,more and more dressing fingers are required with a resultant increase inthe complexity of the wire wrapping apparatus.

ice

Prior art apparatus were incapable of utilizing the advantages of bothtypes of apparatus.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION One feature of the invention contemplates awire wrapping apparatus having a pair of wire wrapping assemblies whichmay be selectively operated in one of two modes of operation to wrap theends of a section of wire on respective terminals on a terminal board.In the first mode of operation, (1) the terminal board is moved in X andY coordinates with respect to the wrapping assemblies, the wrappingassemblies are rotated with respect to the terminal board, and onewrapping assembly is moved transversely with respect to the otherwrapping assembly to position the wire wrapping assemblies overrespective terminals, and (2) the wrapping assemblies are operated tosimultaneously wrap the ends of a section of wire on the terminals. Inthe second mode of operation, (1) the terminal board is moved in X and Ycoordinates with respect to the Wrapping assemblies to position a firstwire wrapping assembly over a first terminal, (2) a first wrappingassembly is operated to wrap a first end of the wire on the firstterminal, (3) the terminal board is moved in X and Y coordinates withrespect to the wrapping assemblies to lay the section of wire in apredetermined pattern from the first terminal to a second terminal, and(4) the second wrapping assembly is operated to wrap the second end ofthe section of wire on the second terminal.

Another feature of the invention contemplates the feeding of the sectionof wire through one of the wrapping assemblies toward the board to laythe wire directly on the terminal board during the second mode ofoperation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevation drawing,partly in crosssection of an apparatus for wrapping the ends of a lengthof wire on respective terminals. I

FIG. 2 is an isometric drawing showing two wire wrapping assemblieswhich are mounted in the apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a cross-section drawing of a fiuid operated cylinder andpiston shown in FIG. 1 which may be indexed to selected positions.

FIG. 4 is an isometric drawing of a terminal board showing differentwire connections which may be made by the apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are plan drawings of the terminalboard in FIG. 4 andshowing in dashed lines the movement of the two wrapping tools of theapparatus of FIGS. 1 and 2 relative to the terminal board for twodifferent modes of operation.

FIG. 7 is a diagram of a control circuit for operating the apparatusshown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is an isometric drawing, partly in cross-section showing thedetails of the wire wrapping tools and wire feeding and strippingmechanism of the apparatus in FIG. 1.

FIGS. 9-l3 are elevation drawings, partly in crosssection, showing thesequence of operation of the wrapping tools and the wire feeding andstripping mechanism ofFIGS.1and8.

Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown an automatic wire wrapping apparatusfor makingelectrical connections between respective terminals 20 on aterminal board21. The terminal board 21 is placed on a table 22 which isslidably mounted on rods 23 for movement in a first horizontal directionwhich may be designated Y coordinate direction. The rods 23 are mountedupon a frame 24 which is slidably mounted upon rods 25 for movement in asecond horizontal direction which is perpendicular to thefirst'horizontal direction. The second horizontal direction may bedesignated X coordinate direction. The rods 25 are mounted on a support26 of the wire wrapping apparatus.

A hydraulic cylinder 28 having a piston rod 27 which may be indexed toselected positions, is mounted on the frame 24 with the piston rodconnected to the table 22 for moving the table 22 in the Y direction. Asimilar hydraulic cylinder 29 having a piston rod 30 is mounted on thesupport 26 with the piston rod 30 connected to the frame 24 for movingthe terminal board 21 in the X direction.

Referring to FIG. 3, there is shown a cross-section of the cylinder 28.The cylinder 28 has a cylindrical cavity 32 in which a piston 33,connected to the piston rod 27, is slidably mounted. The piston 33 has anarrow seal 34 mounted thereon for engagement with the cylindrical wallof the cavity 32. Fluid having equal pressure is admitted to end ports36 and 37 of the cavity 32. Three slidable valve members 38, 39 and 40have holes formed therethrough for selectively forming passagewayscommunicating with holes extending through the side of the cylinder 28into the cavity 32. The valve members 38, 39 and 40 are connected torespective solenoids 43, 44 and 45 which may be selectively operated tomove the valve members to left or right positions.

When the valve members 38 and 40 are in their right positions and thevalve member 39 is in its left position, as viewed in FIG. 3, apassageway 41 is formed through the valve members 38, 39 and 40 and thewall of the cylinder 28 to form an exhaust port for fluid from thecavity 32. If the seal 34 on the piston 33 is to the left of thepassageway 41, fluid escaping through the passageway 41 reduces thepressure within the right side of the cavity 32 to cause the piston 33to move to the right until the seal 34 has covered the passageway 41 andthe movement of the piston is stopped by equalization of the pressure onboth sides of the piston. Thus, it is seen that by selectivelyenergizing the solenoids 43, 44 and 45, it is possible to position thepiston 33 in a number of positions.

Referring back to FIG. 1, a housing 48 is attached to a shaft 49 whichis rotatably mounted in the support 26 above the table 22. A hydrauliccylinder 50 has a piston rod 51 attached to a rack 52 which meshes witha pinion 53 mounted on the shaft 49 for rotating the housing 48 withrespect to a terminal board 20 placed on the table 22. The cylinder 50is preferably similar in structure to that of the cylinders 28 and 29 toselectively rotate the housing 48 to a predetermined angular positionwith respect to the table 22.

The housing 48 contains a pair of wire wrapping assemblies 56 and 57having respective wire wrapping tools 59 and 60 mounted thereon. Thetool 59 is located along the axis of rotation of the housing 48. Wirefeeding and stripping assemblies 62 and 63 are mounted on the wrappingassemblies 56 and 57 adjacent to the tools 59 and 60 for feeding wireinto the tools.

Referring to FIG. 2, there is shown a detailed view of the wire wrappingassemblies 56 and 57. Rods 65, mounted in the housing 48 between aprojection 66 and a wall of the housing, slidably support a block 67 formovement in a horizontal direction. A movable member 69 is slidablymounted on vertical rods 70 mounted on the projection 66 of the housing48. Similarly, a movable member 71 is slidably mounted on vertical rods72 mounted on the block 67. The wire wrapping assembly v56 has a pair ofvertical rods 73 which are slidable within holes formed in the member69. Similarly, the wrapping assembly 57 has a pair of vertical rods 74which are slidable within holes formed through the member 71.

A plurality of serially connected fluid cylinders 76-87 are selectivelyoperable to move the block 67 on the rods 65, and thus position the wirewrapping assembly 57 in a predetermined horizontal position with respectto the wrapping assembly 56. The cylinders 84-87 are serially connectedbetween a projection 90 of the block 67 and one end of a link 91, whichis pivotally mounted on a rod 92 attached to the housing 48. Thecylinders 84-87 may have different lengths of travel. For example, aircylinder 84 may be extended 0.1 inch, the air cylinder 85, 0.2 inch, theair cylinder 86, 0.4 inch, and the air cylinder 87, 0.8 inch. Thus, theair cylinders 84-87 may be selectively energized to position thewrapping assembly 57 from 0.1 inch to 1.5 inches from an initialposition with respect to the projection 66 in 0.1 inch increments. Thecylinders -83 are serially connected between a second end of the link 91and a first end of a link 94 pivotally mounted on a rod 95 connected tothe housing 48; and similarly, the cylinders 76-79 are seriallyconnected between a rod 97 mounted on the housing 48 and a second end ofthe link 94 for selectively moving the block 67. The cylinders 80-83 andcylinders 76-79 have different lengths of travel in the same manner asthe cylinders 84-87 have diiferent lengths of travel. The links 94 and91 provide a 10-1 reduction in the movement of the cylinders 80-83 and a100-1 reduction in movement of the cylinders 76-79. The lengths oftravel of the respective cylinders 76-87 may be chosen to provide forhighly selective and accurate horizontal movement of the wrappingassembly 57 with respect to the assembly 56.

Four serially connected cylinders 100-103 are connected between aprojection 104 of the block 67 and a projection 105 of the member 71 formoving the member 71 to a selected vertical position with respect to theblock 67 A similar arrangement of cylinders (not shown) is connectedbetween the member 69 and the projection 66 for selectively moving themember 69 to a predetermined vertical position with respect to theprojection 66.

An air cylinder 108 is mounted in the wrapping as sembly 56 and has apiston rod (not shown) which abuts against the top of the member 69. Airis admitted to the cylinder 108 to reduce the downward force applied bythe tool 59 as it wraps wire on a terminal 20. A similar cylinder 109 ismounted in the wrapping assembly 57 for reducing the force of the tool60 when it wraps wire on a terminal 20.

Referring to FIG. 8, the tools 59 and 60 and the wire feeding andstripping assemblies 62 and 63 are shown. The tool 59 has a shaft 114, aspindle 115, an inner sleeve 116 and an outer sleeve 117, allconcentrically mounted and vertically slidable with respect to eachother. Similarly, the tool 60 has a shaft 120, a spindle 121, an innersleeve 122 and an outer sleeve 123 which are concentrically mounted andvertically slidable with respect to each other. The shaft 114, thespindle 115, and the inner sleeve 116, have mating longitudinal groovesand ribs such that the shaft 114, spindle 115, and inner sleeve 116 mustrotate as a unit. The shaft 120, the spindle 121, and the inner sleeve122 are similarly mated together. Transverse slots 124 and 125 areformed through the respective spindles and 121 for receiving andencompassing the end of a wire fed therethrough.

The assembly 62 includes a wire feeding mechanism 128 mounted on themember 69 and has a passageway 129 through which the wire 110 is fed. Acapstan wheel 131, just below the passageway 129, is vertically movableby an air cylinder 132 against a wheel 133 which is rotated by areversing motor 134. When the Wheel 133 is rotated and the capstan 131forces the wire 110 in the passageway 129 against the wheel 133, thewire 110 is moved through the passageway 129.

A vertically slidable stripping member 136 is mounted on the mechanism128 and has a passageway 137 which may be aligned with the passageway129 for directing the wire 110 fed by the motor 134 through the slots124 and of the tools 59 and 60. The passageways 129 and 137 are formedat an acute angle with respect to the table 22 so that the wire will befed toward the terminal board 21 from the wire feeding and strippingassembly 62.

A cutter 139 is slidably movable by an air cylinder 140 between themechanism 128 and the member 136 for cooperating with the opening of thepassageway 129' to sever the wire 110. An air cylinder 142 is mounted inthe member 136 and has a piston rod 141 for gripping the insulation onthe severed end of wire as the member 136 is moved upward to strip theinsulation from the severed end. A vacuum duct 143 is provided in themechanism 128 for removing the stripped insulation from the passageway137 when the member 136 is in its raised position.

The assembly 63 has a vertically slidable stripping member 145 mountedon an extension 146 of the member 71. The member 145 has an opening 147for receiving the end of the wire 110 after it is inserted through theslots 124 and 125. An air cylinder 149 is mounted in the member 145 andhas a piston rod 148 for gripping the insulation on the inserted end ofthe wire 110 as the member 145 is moved upward to strip the insulationfrom the end of the wire 110. A vacuum duct 150 is provided in theextension 146 for removing the stripped insulation from the opening 147.

Referring to FIG. 2, a lever 197, pivotally mounted on the mechanism128, is connected to a fluid cylinder 198 mounted on the mechanism 128for moving the stripping member 136 vertically with respect to themechanism 128. Similarly, a lever 200, which is pivotally mounted on theextension 146, is connected to an air cylinder 201 mounted on theprojection 146 for moving the stripping member 145 vertically withrespect to the extension 146.

As shown in FIG. 9, the spindle 115 has a longitudinal recess 155extending from the end of the spindle to the slot 124 in the spindle forreceiving the end of a terminal. Preferably, the recess 155 is beveledat its opening in the end of the spindle 115 for improving thecapturability of a terminal being received therein. A similarlongitudinal recess 160 extends from the end of the spindle 121 to theslot 125 in the spindle 121 for receiving a terminal 20-.

A cylindrical element 152 having two winged portions 153 and 154 isslidably mounted within the lower portion of the slot 124 and the recess155 in the spindle 115 for cooperating with the inner sleeve 116 tosever the insulation on the wire 110 and hold the stripped end of wireagainst the side of the inner sleeve 116 to prevent the engagement ofthe end of a wire 110 against a terminal received in the recess 155 andslot 124. Similarly, a cylindrical element 157, having winged portions158 and 159, is slidable within the recess 160 and the slot 125 forcooperating with the inner sleeve 122 to sever the insulation on the endof the wire 110 and hold the stripped end of wire 110 away from aterminal 20 received in the recess 160 and slot 125.

The inner sleeve 116 has a longitudinal groove 162 which extends fromthe end of the sleeve upwardly. The edge of the groove 162 on the end ofthe inner sleeve 116 cooperates with the winged portion 154 of theelement 152 for severing and partially stripping the insulation on theend of a length of wire 110 which has been severed by the cutter 139(FIG. 8). The stripped or bare end of wire is captured within thelongitudinal groove 162 such that when the shaft 114, spindle 115, andinner sleeve 116 are rotated, the bared end of wire is wrapped around aterminal received in the recess. Slot 163 is formed in the inner sleeve116 opposite to the groove 162 such that when the inner sleeve 116 islowered to the end of the spindle 115, the end of the wire is receivedin the slot 163. Referring to FIG. 10, a longitudinal groove 164 isformed in the inner sleeve 122 similar to the groove 162 of the sleeve116 for cooperating with the wing 159 of the element 157 for severingthe insulation on the inserted end of the wire 110 and partiallystripping the insulation from the inserted end of the wire 110. A slot165 is formed in the inner sleeve 122 opposite to the groove 164 similarto the slot 163 in the sleeve 116, for

receiving the end of the wire when the sleeve 122 is lowered over thespindle 121.

As shown in FIG. 9, the outer sleeve 123 has a slot 167 aligned adjacentto the opening 147 for receiving the end of the wire when the outersleeve 123 is lowered. The cooperation of the sleeve 123 and the spindle121 bends the wire upward in the opening 147 against the upper wall ofthe opening 147 in position to be gripped by the piston rod of the aircylinder 149. The wire 110 is captured longitudinally between thespindle 121 and the sleeve 123 in position to be stripped by the innersleeve 122. The outer sleeve 123 does not rotate with the shaft 120, thespindle 121, and the inner sleeve 122. Also, as shown in FIG. 12, theouter sleeve extends slightly below the inner sleeve 122 and spindle 121to hold the wire 110, extending from the end of the tool 60, away fromthe rotating sleeve 122 and spindle 121 to prevent the rotating sleeve122 from snagging the wire 110. Referring back to FIG. 9, the outersleeve 117 contains a similar slot 168 for allowing free movement of thesevered end of wire 110 when the outer sleeve 117 is lowered to capturethe Wire 110 between the sleeve 117 and spindle 115. With the sleeve 117lowered, wire may be fed as the table 22 and terminal board 21 (FIG. 1)are moved to lay wire in a pattern on the terminal board 21 as shown inFIG. 13. The wire is fed directly toward the terminal board 21 to laythe wire upon the board 21.

Referring to FIG. 9, the shaft 114 has a transverse slot 126 and theshaft 120 has a transverse slot 127. The slots 126 and 127 are alignedwith the slots 124 and 125 of the spindles and 121 to receive the wire110 when the shafts 114 and are in their positions shown in FIG. 9. Whenthe shaft 120 is raised as shown in FIG. 12, the stripped end of wire isplaced or laid completely within the slot of the spindle 121.

Referring to FIG. 2, the inner sleeve 116, the spindle 115, and theshaft 114, are rotatably mounted on the wrapping assembly 56 by abracket 170. The outer sleeve 117 is slidably mounted in a bracket 171.An air cylinder 173 is mounted on the assembly 56 and has a piston rod172 connected to an arm 177 rotatably connected to the shaft 114 forvertically moving the shaft 114 within the spindle 115. Similarly, anair cylinder 175 has a piston rod 176 connected to an arm 177 which isrotatably connected to the inner sleeve 116 for vertically moving thesleeve 116 with respect to the spindle 115. An air cylinder 179 has apiston rod 180 connected to an arm 181 which is connected to the outersleeve 117 for vertically moving the outer sleeve 117 with respect tothe inner sleeve 115. A similar arrangement of air cylinders and arms(not shown) is provided in the wrapping assembly 57 for verticallymoving the shaft 120, the inner sleeve 122, and the outer sleeve 123,with respect to the spindle 121.

The spindle 115, shaft 114, and inner sleeve 116 are rotated by a 270rotation hydraulic motor 183 which rotates a gear 184 meshing with apinion 185 mounted on the spindle 115. The motor 183 and gear 184 aremounted on a bracket 186 extending from the assembly 56. Similarly, amotor 188 and gear 189 are mounted on a bracket 190 for rotating apinion 191 mounted on the spindle 121 to simultaneously rotate the shaft120, spindle 121, and inner sleeve 122 of the tool 60.

A gear 193 is rotatably mounted on the assembly 57 to mesh with the gear189. The gear 193 has a lower cam surface which engages a projection 194of the member 71 to raise the assembly 57 as the end of a wire iswrapped on a terminal by the tool 60. Similarly, a cam gear 195 isrotatably mounted on the assembly 56 and meshes with the gear 184 forengaging a projection (not shown) of the member 69 to raise the assembly56 as the end of a wire is wrapped on a terminal by the tool 59.

Referring to FIG. 7, there is shown a numerical control circuit which ismounted in a console 203 shown in FIG. 1 for controlling the operationof the wire wrap- 7 ping apparatus A timing circuit 205 operates a tapereader 206 to read information into a buffer register 207. An output ofthe buffer register 207 is applied to a control circuit 208 foroperating the control circuit 208 in accordance with the informationtransferred from the tape reader. Other outputs ofthe buffer register207 are applied to AND gates in an X axis register 210, a Y axisregister 211, an R register 212, a head spacing register 213, a toolregister 214, a vertical position register 215, and a Wire feed registerand logic 216, and a display register 217. In accordance with theinformation stored in the buffer register 207, the control circuit 208,in response to a signal from the timing circuit 205, selectivelyoperates the AND gates of the registers 210-217. The registers 210-216operate respective driver circuits 220- 228 which operate appropriatesolenoids and valves (not shown) to control the operation of theapparatus shown in FIG. 1. The display register 217 operates a displaycircuit 229 which indicates the operation of the wiring apparatus. Thetiming circuit 205 may be controlled by signals from the tape reader 206through the buffer register 207 and control circuit 208.

Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a strip 230 mounted beneath thetable 22 which has a plurality of holes 231 horizontally spacedthroughout its length. A light source 232 is mounted on the frame 24 onone side of the strip and a photocell 233 is mounted on the frame 24 onthe other side of the strip. As the table 22 is moved in a Y directionwith respect to the frame 24, the holes pass in front of the lightsource 232 to excite the photocell 233. A similar strip (not shown) ismounted on the frame 24 in the X direction and a similar light source(not shown) and photocell (not shown) are mounted on the support 26 forsensing movement of the frame 24 in the Y direction. Referring to FIG.7, the outputs of the photocells are applied to the wire feed logic 216to control the wire feed driver 228 when the information from the bufferregister 207 has set up the logic 216 to allow such control.

As shown in FIG. 4, a cone-shaped plastic retainer 240 is force fit upona terminal 20]. Other retainers may be mounted on other terminals. Afterthe wiring of the board 21 is completed, the retainer 240 is slipped onthe terminal against the wires on the board to prevent the wires frommoving away from the board during handling or use of the board 21.

OPERATION Referring to FIG. 4, there is shown the terminal board 21having terminals 20a-20p mounted thereon. The apparatus shown in FIG. 1may be used to selectively connect various terminals of the terminalboard 21 in two modes of operation. For example, the automatic wiringapparatus may simultaneously wrap the ends of a length of wire 234 aboutterminals 20i and 200, or the automatic wiring apparatus may first wrapone end of a length of wire 236 about terminal 20p and lay the wire in azigzag pattern through the remaining terminals to the terminal 20a wherethe other end of the wire 236 is wrapped on the terminal 20a. It isnoted that the path the wire 236 is laid in from the terminal 20p to20a, may be selected to provide maximum spacing from two wires 234 and235. When a wire connection may be formed in a straight line betweenterminals, for example, the wire 235 between terminals 200 and 20d, andthe wire 236 between terminals 20i and 200, the connection is morequickly made'by simultaneously wrapping the ends of the section of wirearound the respective terminals rather than using the time consumingprocess of routing the Wire through the terminals.

FIG. shows the position and movement of the tools 59 and 60insimultaneously wrapping the ends of the w ire 236 onto the terminals iand 200. Initially, the tape reader 206, buffer register 207, controlcircuit 208, and timing circuit 205 feed information to the registers214 and 215 to operate the driver circuits 224-227 to 8 position theshafts 114 and (FIGS. 8-12), the spindles 115 and 121, the inner sleeves116 and 122, the outer sleeves 117 and 123, the stripping mechanisms 136and 145 in the position shown in FIG. 8. Next, the tape reader 206, thebuffer register 2.07, and control circuit 208 feed information to the Xaxis register 210, Y axis register 211, and R axis register 212. The Xaxis driver circuit 220 and the X axis driver circuit 221 cause theactuation of the indexing cylinders 28 and 29 (FIG. 1) to move the table'22 and position the terminal 20i directly beneath the tool 59. The Rdriver circuit 222 causes the actuation of the indexing cylinder 50 torotate the head 48 and position the tool 60 in a direct line with theterminal 200. as shown in FIG. 5.Information fed to wire feed logic andregister 216 operates the feed driver circuit 226 to actuate the aircylinder 132 (FIG. 8) and the motor 134 to feed wire through thepassageways 129 and 137, and the slots 124 and 125 of the spindles 115and- 121, the slots 126 and 127 of the shafts 114 and 120 (FIG. 9), intothe opening 147 of the stripping mechanism 145. p

Information from the tape reader 206 is then fed to the tool register214, to actuate the air cylinder 179 and lower the outer sleeve 123 asshown in FIG. 9, to bend the inserted end of the wire 110 against theupper wall of the opening 147 adjacent to the air cylinder 149. Thecapstan wheel 131 is released to allow additional wire to be pulled fromthe wire feeding stripping assembly 62 as the sleeve 123 is lowered. Theair cylinder 148 is then actuated to grip the insulation on the end ofthe wire. Next, the inner sleeve 122 is lowered as shown in FIG. 10 tosever and partially strip the insulation on the end of the wire 110. Theinsulation on the end of the wire is pulled oif by upward movement ofthe stripping member and the stripped insulation is removed by thevacuum duct 150 as shown in FIG. 11. The bared end of wire is thenpositioned completely with the slot 125 of the spindle 121 by upwardmovement of the shaft 120. The shaft 120 is shown in its raised positionin FIG. 12.

In the next step, information is fed to the head spacing register 213,whereupon the cylinders 76-87 (FIG. 2) are selectively actuated toposition the-tool 60 directly over the terminal 200. As the cylinders76-87 are operated, wire is pulled through the slot 124 of the spindle115 (FIG. 9) and the slot 126 of the shaft 114 from the wire feeding andstripping assembly 62 wherein the capstan wheel 131 has been released.

After the bit 60 is positioned over the terminal 200, the cylinder 140(FIG. 8) is operated to move the cutter 139 to sever the wire betweenthe passageways 129 and 137. Next, the outer sleeve 117, the innersleeve 116, the stripping mechanism 136, and the shaft 114 are operatedto sever and strip the insulation from the severed end of the wire andposition the stripped end completely within the slot 124 of the spindle115.

Information is then fed to the vertical position register 215 whichexcites the drivers 226 and 227 to selectively actuate the air cylinders100-103 and the air cylinders (not shown) connected between the member69 and assembly 56 to lower the wrapping assemblies 56 and57, whereuponthe terminals 20i and 200 are receivedwithin the respective recesses and1 60 ofthe spindles 115 and 121. As the terminal 200 is received in therecess 160, it engages the cylindrical element 157 and causes the member157 to move upward within the slot 125 as shown in FIG. 11. The wing 158of the element 157 holds. the bare end of the wire against the wall ofthe inner sleeve to prevent the bare end of the wire from engaging thetermlnal 200 and being bent as the shaft 120, spindle 121 and sleeve122, are rotated. The cylindrical element 152 (FIG. 9) of the tool 59 ismoved upward within the slot 124 by the terminal 20i in the same manneras the element 157 of the bit 60.

The shaft 114, the spindle 115 and the inner sleeve-116 of the tool 59and the shaft 120, the spindle 121, and the mner sleeve 122 of the tool60 are now rotated by the motors 183 and 188 (FIG. 2) and the gears 184and 189 to wrap the stripped ends of the wire on the respectiveterminals 201' and 200 and form a wired connection 234 (FIG. 4). Thecamming gears 193 and 195 (FIG. 2) are also rotated to raise thewrapping assemblies as the tools 59 and 60 rotate to form tightly woundhelical wraps on the terminals 201' and 200. The wrapping assemblies v56and 57 are raised and the tools 59 and 60 returned to their initialpositions ready to receive a wire to complete a cycle of operation.

In making the wire connection 236 (FIG. 4) between the terminals 20a and20;), the shafts 114 and 120, the spindles 115 and 121, the innersleeves 116 and 122, the outer sleeves 117 and 123, and the strippingmembers 136-145, are in their initial positions as shown in FIG. 8. Theindexing cylinders 28 and 29 move the table 22 (FIG. 1) and terminalboard 21 to position terminal 20p directly beneath the tool 60 as shownin FIG. 6.

The end of a wire 110 is fed through the slots 124 and 125 of thespindles 115 and 121 and the slots 126 and 127 of the shafts 114 and 120into the opening 147 of the stripping mechanism 145. The outer sleeve123, the inner sleeve 122, the stripping member 145, and the shaft 120are then operated to strip the insulation from the end of the wire andplace the stripped end entirely within the slot 125 of the spindle 121.

Next, information is fed to the vertical position register 215 (FIG. 7)which actuates to lower only the tool 60 over the terminal 20p whereuponthe terminal 20p is received within the recess 160 of the spindle 121.During the lowering of the tool 60, the capstan wheel 131 is released toallow additional wire to be pulled from the wire feeding and strippingassembly 62. The tool 60 is now rotated to wrap the stripped end of thewire 110 on the terminal 20p. The tool 60 is then raised to its initialposition from the terminal board.

In the next step, the sleeve 117 is lowered over the spindle 124 asshown in FIG. 13. The terminal board 21 on the table 22 is moved in theY direction beneath the tool 59 to position the tool 59, as shown at 239in FIG. 6, with respect to the terminal board 21. As the table 22 movesin the Y direction, pulses from the photocell 233 pass through the logiccircuit 216 to actuate the wire feed driver 226 and cause the feeding ofWire through the passageways 129 and 137, the slot 124 of the spindle115, and the slot 126 of the shaft 114 and between the sleeve 117 andspindle 124 toward the terminal board 21. The wire 110 naturally bendsagainst the terminal board to lay between the terminals 20. The table 22is then moved in the X direction beneath the housing 48 to position thetool 59 as shown at 241 in FIG. 6 with respect to the terminal board 21.Again, wire is fed through the tool 59 to lay on the terminal board 21between the terminals. Movement of the table 22 in the Y direction whilewire is fed through tool 59 lays wire from point 241 to point 243adjacent to terminal 20a as shown at 243 in FIG. 6. Subsequently, thetable 22 is moved in the X direction to position the bit 59 directlyover the terminal 20a.

The wire feed motor may now be reversed to take up slack in the wirelaid from the terminal 20p. Next, the wire cutter 139, inner sleeve 116,stripping mechanism 136, and shaft 114 are operated to sever and stripthe insulation from the severed end of wire and place the stripped endof Wire completely within the slot 124 of the spindle 115. The tool 59is then lowered over the terminal 20a and rotated to wrap the strippedend of wire on the terminal 20a to form the wire connection 236. Raisingthe tool 59 from the terminal 20a completes the cycle of operation formaking the wire connection 236 (FIG. 4).

The wire connection 236 may be laid in any selected pattern on theterminal board 21. By moving the terminal board 21 simultaneously. inthe X and Y directions, it is possible to lay the connections 236 alonga diagonal to the X and Y directions.

In feeding the wire through the tool 59 when the connection 236 (FIG. 6)is made, the wire may be fed through the slot 124 (FIG. 9) in thespindle and the slot 126 in the shaft 114 without the sleeve 117 beinglowered. The wire is then fed at an angle toward the terminal board asthe board is moved under the tool 59. At the points 238, 239 and 241(FIG. 6), it is necessary to rotate the housing 48 such that the wire isalways fed in the direction that the terminal board is moved.

It is to be understood that the above-described embodiment is simplyillustrative of the invention and that many other embodiments may bedevised without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. An automatic wire wrapping apparatus for connecting terminals of aterminal board comprising:

a table for supporting the terminal board;

a housing;

means for moving the table along two transverse axes with respect to thehousing;

means for rotating the housing with respect to the table:

first and second wire wrapping tools mounted in the housing, each toolhaving (1) an axis substantially perpendicular to the table, (2) meansfor receiving a terminal, and (3) means for receiving an end of asection of wire such that when the tool is rotated about its axis theend of the section of wire is wrapped on the terminal;

means for transversely moving the second tool relative to the firsttool;

means for axially moving the first and second tools toward and away fromthe table to receive terminals in the tools;

means for rotating the tools about their axes; and

control means for selectively operating the table moving means, thehousing rotating means, the second tool transversely moving means, thefirst and second tool axially moving means, and the tool rotating meansin first and second modes of operation;

said first mode of operation being to simultaneously Wrap the ends ofthe section of wire on respective first and second terminals; and

said second mode of operation being to sequentially (1) wrap a first endof the section of wire on the first terminal, (2) lay the section ofwire in a predetermined path on the terminal board from the first to thesecond terminal, and (3) wrap the second end of the section of wire onthe second terminal.

2. An automatic wire wrapping apparatus for connecting terminals of aterminal board, comprising:

a support;

a table mounted on the support for movement along two transverse axes;

a housing mounted on the support for rotation wit respect to the table;

means for feeding a first end of a section of wire at an angle towardthe table;

first and second elongated wrapping tools mounted in the housing suchthat the first tool is between the Wire feeding means and the secondtool; each of said tools being rotatable about an axis substantiallyperpendicular to the table and movable along its axis toward and awayfrom the table; and each of said tools having (1) means thereon forreceiving a terminal, (2) a slot formed transversely through the toolfor receiving an end of a section of wire, and (3) means forencompassing the end of the section of wire such that rotation of thetool wraps the end of the section of wire on the terminal; and

means for sequentially (1) aligning the transverse slots of the tools inthe path of the first end of the section of wire being fed from the wirefeeding means,

- (2) axially moving the second tool and rotating the second tool towrap the first end of the section of wire on a first terminal, (3)moving the table such that the section of wire from the wire feedingmeans passes through the slot in the first tool and is laid in a patternon the terminal board from the first terminal to a second terminal, and(4) axially moving the first tool and rotating the first tool to wrapthe second end of the section of wire on the second terminal.

3. An automatic wire wrapping apparatus for connecting terminals of aterminal board comprising:

a table for supporting the terminal board;

a housing;

means for moving the table along two transverse axes with respect to thehousing;

means for rotating the housing with respect to the table;

means mounted in the housing for feeding a first end of a section ofwire at an angle toward the table;

first and second elongated wrapping tools mounted in the housing suchthat the first tool is between the wire feeding means and the secondtool; each of said tools being rotatable about an axis substantiallyperpendicular to the table and movable along its axis toward and awayfrom the table; and each of said tools having (1) means thereon forreceiving a terminal, (2) a slot formed transversely through the toolfor receiving an end of a section of wire, and (3) means forencompassing the end of the section of wire such that rotation of thetool wraps the end of the section of Wire on the terminal;

means for transversely moving the second tool relative to the firsttool;

means for axially moving the first and second tools toward and away fromthe table to receive terminals in the tools;

means for rotating the tools about their axes; and

control means for selectively operating the table moving means, thehousing rotating means, the second tool transversely moving means, thefirst and second tool axially moving means, and the tool rotating meansin first and second modes of operation;

said first mode of operation being to simultaneously wrap the ends ofthe section of wire on respective first and second terminals; and

said second mode of operation being to sequentially (1) Wrap a first endof the section of wire on the first terminal, (2) lay the section ofwire in a predetermined path on the terminal board from the first to thesecond terminal, and (3) wrap the second end of the section of wire onthe second terminal.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,030,985 4/1962 Jacobson 140713,095,913 7/1963 Shepherd et al 140124 3,246,381 4/ 1966 Etchison et a129-33 3,378,906 4/ 1968 Dorsey.

30 THOMAS H. EAGER, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R.

